Madonna is a pop artist who's been well-known for her use of religious imagery all the way throughout her career - but it seems that her rebellious spirit has been quelled a little these days.

The star gave her seal of approval to Pope Francis I during a gig in Philadelphia last night, making several references to him throughout the evening - including "I've been excommunicated from the Catholic Church three times. It shows the Vatican really cares" and joking that the Pope was "stalking" her, as he has been in New York at the same time as her recently, and was planning a trip to Philadelphia. ""Either he's a copycat or he's secretly in love with me," she said.

She then dedicated a ukulele-led version of Edith Piaf's 'La Vie en Rose' to the pontiff, saying "Since Popey-wopey is on his way over here, I want to dedicate this song to him because it's a love song, and I firmly believe that love does make the world go 'round. Honestly, I don't think there's that much difference between me and the Pope."

Watch the footage below: 

Via Billboard.com